Posted
by
Soulskillon Saturday January 24, 2009 @03:14AM
from the learn-until-the-test dept.

zwei2stein writes "I found this question with far-reaching implications in the off-topic section of a forum I frequent: 'My economics teacher is forcing us to give up all of our work for the semester. Every page of notes and paper must be turned over to her to be destroyed to prevent future students from copying it. My binder was in my backpack, and she went into my backpack to take it. Is that legal?' Besides the issue with private property invasion, which was the trigger of that post, there is much more important question: Can a teacher ask a student not to retain knowledge? How does IP law relate to teaching and sharing knowledge? Whose property are those notes?"

If someone is stealing from me, I have every right (in my state, anyway) to prevent that theft, with "reasonable" violence if need be.

My state law specifically states that I have the right to defend myself, other people, and my property with a "reasonable" amount of force. And by damned, I would do exactly that. A punch in the nose is more than reasonable for a semester's worth of lecture notes.

If recent police action is any indication, then it would be "reasonable" for me to taze her and beat her with nightsticks as well! After all, standards are standards.

First off, your comment doesn't seem to address the issue that the parent raised, that fighting cheating and plagiarism is the thrust of this lunacy.

I suggested that if cheating or plagiarism was the target then collecting the notes would not get the job done because students who would do it in the first place would make a copy of the notes anyhow.

So then I get to the end of your rant about something unrelated to what is being discussed to find that Europeans are apparently going around vomiting when they hear jingoistic BS.

These European friends of yours, they are engaging in rabidly codependent behavior. Life is too short and they should not sacrifice their health for the sake of America when America is not willing to reciprocate this sick level of devotion. Hell, I ain't puking my guts out any time some ignorant piece of euro trash want to run their mouth... But then, as a member of the freest country on earth I am free to make that decision.

You know, it would be kind of amusing to offer a trade. When the teacher asks for the notes, say "I will trade you my notes for a signed statement affirming your assertion that nothing you have taught any of your students will ever be of use to any of them for the rest of their lives and that your entire professional career has been a meaningless sham. If you want to add an addendum about how you are a charlatan and scam artist, you are free to do so."

For extra credit, do it in the style of Phil Hartman's "Newsradio" character:

Hand over a copy."Here's one you can take right now!"And another copy."This one you can tear up later."Put another on her desk."Here's one for the Hamptons."Pull out another copy."This one I like. I keep."Throw another copy to the floor."This one displeases me."

How many people can read hex if only you and dead people can read hex?

If every dead person can read hex, then the answer is several millions (however many people have died, plus 1). However, your question is non-sequitorious, because many, many living people can read hex, at least 2B that I know of personally (or maybe it's not 2B; that is the question).